LOS ANGELES — Week 6 at the Drew League had thrilling last minute finishes, NBA players returning to the floor, and undefeated teams barely escaping.

But let’s not bury the lede. The enduring image of Week 6 will be 6’1” Legacy G Shannin Sharpe (Colorado) climbing the ladder that was 6’9” No Shnacks F Jordan Richard (Cal State Los Angeles) and throwing down one of the most impressive dunks in recent history.

The play started with Legacy G Julius Bilbrew (Antelope Valley) spinning off of No Shnacks G Darren Collison (Sacramento Kings, UCLA) to get into the lane. Bilbrew went with a floater off of the spin move, but Richard was right there to greet Bilbrew with a blocked shot that volleyed just inside the three-point line. While the other four No Shnacks defenders started to transition to their end of the floor, none of them secured the rebound. Sharpe secured the basketball, took one dribble, planted two feet in between the dotted line of the free throw circle and the no charge area, and launched towards the rim.

Richard was still under the rim, and despite a Legacy player on both sides of him, he went up to challenge the smaller Sharpe. Richard’s jump was a tad late, and he got Sharpe’s body before his length could get the ball. Sharpe wasn’t done rising; despite microfracture surgery in his left knee in 2009, Sharpe still had serious lift. Just a week earlier, Legacy G Jeff Remmington commented that he and Sharpe were “the most explosive backcourt in the Drew – NBA players included.”

Sharpe would not be denied. He slammed the ball through the net, hanging on the rim just as Richard’s prone body fell from the sky to the floor below. Before Sharpe landed, the whistle blew – foul on Richard. Richard was flat on his back as Sharpe landed on his feet, and a gym that was relatively tranquil on a late Sunday morning created a thunderstorm of raucous reaction.

Just a week earlier, LAUNFD G Elijah Stewart (Southern California) had laid claim to the best dunk of the summer, and that was in a packed gym for a marquee matchup. The sound and fury of this dunk by Sharpe blew that one out of the water. The fact that a foul was called on Richard allowed for extended reactions, and those were just about as cruel as Sharpe’s dunk. Legacy F Desi Barmore (Cal State San Bernardino) flexed over Richard as he was being helped off the floor, phones were out en masse, and the game literally stopped for a good thirty seconds. Drew League DJ Young Free played Tamela Mann’s “Take Me to the King” as the referees tried to get the two teams lined up for Sharpe’s free throw.

Alas, Sharpe missed the FT, and No Shnacks eventually regained control of the game and won 84-79. Darren Collison made his season debut, scoring 19 points, while No Shnacks G Ryan Nitz (Cal State Monterey Bay) made 6-of-8 three-pointers and had a game-high 22 points.

“It was a big dunk, a big momentum swing for them,” Nitz said of the dunk that posterized his teammate Richard, who finished the game with four blocked shots. “But Jordan [Richard] doesn’t care about that and neither does our team. So he’s still going to defend and we’re going to defend as a team.”

As for Legacy, they saw their four-game losing streak snapped. Sharpe smiled when the dunk was mentioned, but shook his head too.

“Didn’t get the win!” he said on his way out the locker room.

In other Drew League action from this week:

– Reigning MVP G Vince Camper (Tulane) left I Can All-Stars for New Image, joining his brother Julian (Cal State San Marcos) to defeat the Jaguars 73-69.

– The defending champs LAUNFD beat Sky Ryse 79-69 on Friday night, but then turned in one of the worst offensive performances at the Drew League in at least three years Sunday, losing to Panthers 76-41.

– BB4L’s Baron Davis (UCLA) finally made his on-court season debut, helping BB4L get to 7-0 after wins over Nova Stars on Friday and Hard Times on Sunday.

– Birdie’s Revenge bounced back from their two-game losing streak to embarrass I Can All-Stars 90-53, the largest blowout so far this season at the Drew League.

– #Juglife got some much needed help in the form of F Jordan Hamilton (Texas), and Hamilton had 31 points (10/13 FGs) to lead #Juglife to a 71-68 win vs. Pandas.

– LA LOOP F Leon Gibson was named the Player of the Week for a 32-point, 15-rebound performance in a 91-76 win over Problems.

– Houdini’s All-Stars blew a 20-point 2nd-half lead vs. Clozers, but SG Garrett Nevels (Hawai’i) made a three-pointer in the final seconds of the game to give Houdini’s All-Stars a 79-78 win that kept them undefeated.

– Sky Ryse got 40 points (12/16 FGs) from G Justin Johnson (Concordia Irvine) in an 82-78 win vs. Spirit, Johnson’s third game out of four with at least 30 points.

– Playing without 2013 co-MVP G Jonathan Gibson (New Mexico State), Redemption went to overtime against Citi Team Blazers after a floater by G Kerry Carter (Saint Mary’s) at the end of regulation. Carter made a three in overtime to help Redemption defeat Citi Team Blazers 95-91 and stay undefeated at 6-0.

– NBA teammates F Stanley Johnson (Detroit Pistons, Arizona) and C Andre Drummond (Detroit Pistons, Connecticut) made their 2016 season debut for ICEO, but they couldn’t prevent them from losing their third straight game, as Bulldogs got 21 points and 15 rebounds from F James Boyd (El Camino College Compton Center). Bulldogs came back from down 12 at halftime and defeated ICEO 78-75.

LOS ANGELES — In Week 6, LAUNFD suffered one of the most embarrassing losses by a defending champion in Drew League history, scoring only 41 points against a Panthers team that entered the contest with a 1-4 record. But in Week 7, LAUNFD would bring the full squad, including…